Photo: John Howe, who wants to run Minnesota elections and business services, campaigning at a Republican BPOU picnic this summer.

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The National Rifle Association has no full-time Minnesota lobbyist. Why? It doesn't need one.

Ruud, like many of her fellow Republicans and more than a few DFLers, helps illustrate the long-standing legislative dominance of the gun rights movement at Minnesota’s Capitol, where the National Rifle Association doesn’t even have a single lobbyist solely assigned to the state. Instead, the movement has counted on dozens of lawmakers who come from areas where firearms are deeply woven into family and community traditions, underpinned by a philosophy of self-reliance and self-defense. . . .

It's a good read, However, not everything about gun legislation in Minnesota can simply be attributed to family and community culture.

The National Rifle Association does have a place at the table of two groups advocating for outdoors enthusiasts. Take this list of members of the influential Minnesota Outdoor Heritage Alliance (MOHA MN), distributed at the group's 2018 Legislative Banquet on March 7, 2018:

The National Rifle Association is there, right between Muskies, Inc. and the National Turkey Federation.

Officially recognized by the NASC (National Assembly of Sportsmens Caucuses) and the CSF (Congressional Sportsmens Foundation), the Sportsmen's Caucus is a bipartisan group of legislators from both the MN Senate and House who have an interest in issues that are important to the sportsmen and sportswomen of Minnesota.

Caucus membership requires a legislator to sign a general statement in support of hunting and fishing traditions. As a member of the Caucus, a legislator will attend at least 2 caucus meetings during the legislative session and one outdoor-associated banquet during the year. Members are not bound to particular votes, however.

The Sportsmen Caucus meets biweekly with the MOHA to gather support for key issues. During the general session, the Sportsmen's Caucus provides an opportunity for sportsmen and sportswomen to come together with MN Legislators to discuss issues important to hunting and fishing communities.

The modern sporting rifle is widely misunderstood throughout the country because they are aesthetically similar to military rifles. However, these rifles do not function the same as military firearms and have distinctly different practical uses and technical specifications. Efforts to ban modern sporting rifles often focus on emotion, cosmetics, and appearances, yet ignore the technological differences. Today, modern sporting rifles are commonly found in the hands of hunters and recreational shooters throughout the nation who value them for their durability and reliability.

Introduction

The modern sporting rifle, based on the AR-15 platform, is widely mischaracterized. Confusion exists because while these rifles have a similar appearance to military rifles, they do not function in the same way. Groups wanting to ban modern sporting rifles have, for many years, spread misleading information about the AR-15 to support their cause.

The AR platform is a semi-automatic rifle, most often chambered in 5.56 NATO/.223 Remington, .308 Winchester, and other varieties of calibers. This platform is designed for versatility and made to accommodate a vast array of modifications and accessories including: scopes, sights, slings, lights, and many other practical hunting tools. Folding and telescoping stocks as well as pistol grips can customize cosmetic appearance, but the core function of the firearm remains identical to traditional semi-automatic rifles.

Modern sporting rifles and their accessories are a booming trend within the firearms industry. Sales figures are difficult to report accurately because many manufacturers are privately held companies, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) statistics do not distinguish between rifle types. However, anecdotal evidence is plentiful. Firearms manufacturers across the nation are working to meet growing customer demand, with modern sporting rifles at times outselling traditional rifles. . . .

A standard capacity magazine generally means any detachable ammunition feeding device with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Some state laws, created after the 1993 Federal Assault Weapons Ban, limit the number of rounds a magazine can legally hold, generally to ten or less. Such restrictions come at high costs to firearm manufactures and consumers, with little to no evidence indicating a reduction in crime.

Introduction

A standard capacity magazine generally means any detachable ammunition feeding device with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition. According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the standard magazine for many types of semi-automatic handguns and rifles often exceeds 10 rounds and can sometimes contain anywhere between 15-30 rounds of ammunition.

In 1993, President Clinton signed the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which made it illegal to either manufacture or sell ammunition magazines holding more than 10 rounds. The Federal Ban expired in 2004; however, several states presently have similar bans in place with allowable capacities varying from state to state.3 A peer reviewed study by Koper and Roth in 2004 from the Jerry Lee Center of Criminology, University of Pennsylvania, found “no evidence of reductions in multiple-victim gun homicides or multiple-gunshot wound victimizations” as a result of the federal ban on standard capacity magazines.

On a Monday evening in early February, two months into a national debate over gun violence after the massacre at a Connecticut elementary school, representatives of the firearms industry were wining and dining lawmakers in Washington.

The occasion was the “Changing of the Guard” reception and dinner for the incoming leadership of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus, which counts more than 250 members in the House and Senate. Hosting the gathering was a little-known but well-connected organization, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation.

Despite its low profile, the foundation has close ties to members of Congress, allowing its donors, who give as much as $100,000 a year, to mix with lawmakers at shooting contests, banquets and wine tastings. The food and drink at last month’s gathering were paid for in part by

the National Rifle Association and the trade group for the gun industry.

Over the past year, sportsmen’s caucus members have clinked glasses and puffed cigars at a “Wine, Wheels and Wildlife” fund-raiser at a North Carolina vineyard, a “Whiskies of the World” and cigar reception on Capitol Hill, and a “Stars and Stripes Shootout” in Tampa, Fla., where the top shooting awards went to a Republican congressman and a lobbyist for the N.R.A. Such events provide the firearms industry and other foundation donors with a tax-deductible means of lobbying the elected officials who shape policies important to their businesses.

A private charity not affiliated with the government, the foundation carries the cachet of its relationship with the sportsmen’s caucus in Congress, which it provides with research on policies affecting hunting and fishing. But while ostensibly focused on those outdoor pursuits, it also presses issues important mainly to the gun industry, which is one of its largest contributors.

The foundation opposes restrictions on high-capacity ammunition magazines, a ban on military-style AR-15 rifles and the imprinting of bullets with traceable serial numbers to help solve crimes. All of those proposals have surfaced in the current legislative debate, which is expected to continue Thursday when a Senate Judiciary Committee considers a bill to curb illegal gun trafficking.

The foundation says its positions fit naturally with its mission “to work with Congress, governors and state legislatures to protect and advance hunting, recreational angling, and shooting and trapping.” . . .

In 2015, MinnPost's Sam Brodey reported about The fight for the soul of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus delineating the tensions that rise between those lawmakers backing conservation measures and the policy objectives of the gun rights crowd and the moneyed industries that love the later. The article is also of interest since Tim Walz, who has backed away from earlier cavorting with the NRA as he seeks the DFL's endorsement for governor, is quoted exhaustively in the article, given his position at the time as the co-chair of the congressional members of the group.

Whether one favors gun rights or more oversight and restrictions on firearms, one takeaway is on the pervasive power of money and banquets in policy making.

Photos: screen grabs from CSF webpages.

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What the article doesn't mention is the spending by the committee, which has proven to be a boon to one Greater Minnesota printing company.

Reading the report for this period, Bluestem noticed that the downtown business-backed group isn't putting printing presses to work in Minneapolis despite its name (Minneapolis Works!).

Nope, the work is being done at Schmidt Printing, located in pastoral Byron, a charming small town near Rochester in southeastern Minnesota. The downtown business-backed group handed over $64,235.74 to the hard-working Greater Minnesota printers.

The group spent $91,982.84 for the reporting period, so most of Minneapolis Works! money was spent putting people to work somewhere else. It's even a greater percentage when one adds in the group's spending in the evil metro outside Minneapolis: $26,518 to the 1858 Group (we don't know how much of that might have oozed out to Eagan and beyond).

Understanding the opportunity a large printing conglomerate could offer Schmidt, Al sold the company in 1989 to Minnesota-based Taylor Corporation. This alignment fortified Schmidt’s value-added printing services and enabled the company to add the card pack line of business in 1990 with the purchase of Dimensions in marking, a B-to-B card pack company.

The Taylor Corporation is the eponymous private company held by Glen Taylor, summed up by his Wikipedia entry:

In the weird hydrology of Minnesota politics, perhaps some of that money will get dumped into the Minnesota River at North Mankato and flow down to mingle with Minneapolis's drinking water along with the Ag Mafia's treasured pollutants. That could be as close to Minneapolis Works! dollars come to the average voter in Minneapolis.

Update: In the comments, a reader notes that since the water intake for Minneapolis's drinking water is upstream on the Mississippi River at Columbia Heights, none of the cash polluting this election will reach workers living in Minneapolis. Sad.

Photo: The Money Barn. Heaven alone knows what sort of effluent flows out of this, or if the MPCA monitors it.

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A News Tribune editorial and a commentary penned by a Minnesota House member from Duluth, both published a week ago today, painted the Legislature’s 2015 action with a broad brush of negativity (Our View: “Priorities, nonmetro Minnesota snubbed,” and Lawmaker’s View: “Session ends with disappointment”).

It was enough to make a reader wonder if the paper and Rep. Jennifer Schultz were under the misconception the popular Growler Bill we passed this year referred to dispositions instead of breweries. . . .

Moreover, a quick glance at Al Juhnke's post Outstate News (6-21-2015) at his MiddleMinnesota (Views of a Moderate Pol) blog shows that the Duluth News Tribune and the freshman legislator aren't alone in expressing concern about the session. Juhnke includes ten articles, including the editorial, in his weekly news digest.

But perhaps Hackbarth can mansplain all this to Duluth residents, who might not think of themselves as "The Range."

Photo: Tom Hackbarth.

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Jan 27, 2014

Section 8 of the STOCK Act of 2012 requires the Clerk of the House of Representatives to provide online public access to financial disclosure reports filed by members of Congress and candidates for Congress.

Using the online database, Bluestem checked out the filings by the three Republican candidates and Jim Read, the one DFL candidate to file a financial disclosure report. The reports are largely unremarkable, with the exception of some missing items on Emmer's resume.

Tom Emmer

Tom Emmer's report shows that he was paid $96,000 by Clear Channel, presumably for the "Emmer and Davis Show," which he quit in June 2013 to run for office. For assets and "unearned" income, the former state representative owns a rental property in Delano, his law firm, two IRAs and his state retirement fund.

According to the new financial disclosure report, Emmer took out at note in June 2013 from the Bank of Maple Plain in the range of $100,000-$250,000 (the form does not require an exact figure).

Phil Krinkie

Krinkie's report lists salaries from the Snelling Company (his heating and cooling firm) from which he received $100,000 in 2013 and $80,000 from the Taxpayers League during the same year. Mary Krinkie, his wife, received $152,000 from the Minnesota Hospital Association, for whom she lobbies.

Together the Krinkies hold an impressive investment portfolio, retirement funds, and business assets, along with two rental properties in Lino Lakes.

For liabilities, there's a mortgage (between $250,000-$500,000) and a business loan (between $100,000-$250,000).

Mar 18, 2013

How close are Gun Owners of America executive director Larry Pratt and toxic metal Christian drummer, preacher and radio show host Bradlee Dean?

Pretty close

They've shared "staged shooting" conspiracy theories about Sandy Hook and Aurora, attributing the spree shootings to evil designs by the Obama administration timed with the United Nations small arms treaty.

And until the registration was revoked (likely for nonpayment of an annual renewal fee by Dean's ministry), from July 15, 2010 one, Gun Owners of America served as registered agent for YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CANNOT HIDE INTERNATIONAL,INC. in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

More than just a glorified post office box, a registered agent is the official contact for an out-of-state organization or business. "Foreign" companies are required to have local representative in states where they do business.

May 04, 2012

Bluestem Prairie writes for an audience, however small, that's been built since the blog began in 2006. Let me tell you what you should know about this "brand" before you approach it as a communications staff person.

At first, Bluestem Prairie assembled news digests about Tim Walz's long-shot campaign for congress across a huge district spanning several minor media markets (minor in national terms). I'd noticed that Walz was a bit of a force of nature, surrounded by an energetic, large, and young campaign staff willing to go the distance across the district, and so Bluestem began digesting the news in a district outside of any single major media market. It was fun to test some ideas I had about blogs in minor markets.

There was some original reporting but little editorial opinion. It was inherently a great story that grew as Walz and his campaign staff pulled off one of the most surprising upsets of that wave year.

Over the years, the blog has evolved largely into a place for editorial opinion about rural MInnesota politics, not just those of the First. And while it's opinion, I try to ground those opinions in research and some incredible sources throughout the state who've proven to be reliable. I also try for humor rather than predictable outrage, mostly because this stuff seems pretty entertaining to me, however upsetting Minnesota's political scene has become.

That's what the readers come here for. That's the brand.

What they don't visit Bluestem for are talking points and messaging developed in a focus group in Alexandria, VA or St. Paul MN, then honed by wordsmiths in a comm staff. It's perfectly fine for other bloggers, right and left, to feel that they are messaging for the campaigns, organizations or movements that deliver that content and copy to them. My readers can find that material at those locations.

Nor am I looking for strategic plans on what and how, in what order, Bluestem should post here or what I should tweet. If paid professionals or ambitious volunteers want to do that, good enough. It's not Bluestem's brand.

While many bloggers appreciate confidential conference calls, "access," and other perks that put them on your team, Bluestem isn't part of your team any more than the Wall Street Journal or the Clara City Herald is part of your team. Or your "partner" or anything such thing. Call me that and you'll probably hear something back that will hurt your gentle professional ears.

So, just as you wouldn't ask a reporter to listen in to an off-the-record, insiders-only strategy session or send a pitch list of what she might tweet and what language she should use in articles, don't invite me to such sessions or send me the "Hi Bloggers" checklist and agenda for supporting your candidate, policy, or end-of-session messaging strategy. I'm not part of a team. I'm a writer, taught by some of the most cantankerous and adorable Southern poets and novelists ever to pitch their tents in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Send me the press releases you'd send to the Journal and the Herald. Pitch stories if you want: I love to hear from you. That's part of your business--and as much as I can as a crabby old writer, I'll try to discover the story in the material you send me, weigh its import, then publish what I want.

Publicists who understand this do well. One of the things I've always respected from the Walz campaign was just that: press releases, media conference calls, and the like. Those who try to goat-rope me into something like a Japanese press club? Not so much.

The other pet peeve is advice on how to "frame" an issue. Come to me with "help" while dropping the name George Lakoff, and you'll discover that I have a metaphor for you. You won't thank me.

Now, in a hearing Thursday on retirement benefits for MNSCU employees (prompted by big rollovers of vacation time for top administrators), The Belle of Waseca County once again forgets that he's a small business owner and his own boss.

Parry said companies usually force employees to use their vacation time so that they’re rested and perform well on the job.

“I’m forced to take [my two weeks], why aren’t they forced to take theirs?” Parry said after the meeting.

Distracted by another scandal in the Republican Party of Minnesota, our camera crew was unable to capture footage of Mike Parry looking in a mirror, talking to himself, and forcing Mike Parry to take two weeks vacation. Or perhaps that's Dave Senjem's job, though we do not know of vacation time for our part-time legislators, who can, after all, claim per diem for weekends and holidays during the session, just as the Emo Senator does.

Such forgetfulness seems hard-wired in Minnesota Republican DNA these days, what with Tony Sutton forgetting to tell Pat Anderson about the $10,000 medical marijuana study he was conducting in 2010 when she came looking for help with gas money for her campaign for state auditor.

Or perhaps nurture, not nature, contributed to that study. Something had to make people want to eat those burritos.

Maybe Mike Parry congressional campaign consultant Ben Golnik knows what Sutton was smoking, since he's one of the "insiders" that MPR identifies in

Sutton seemed to favor the services of current and former party executive directors. The last three were awarded contracts to work for the Republican Party.

During Sutton's tenure, Ryan Griffin served as the party's executive director. But in addition to his annual salary of $85,000, he was also paid roughly $14,000 for consulting and legal work, according to campaign finance documents.

Sutton characterized the payments as a bonus for advising the party on legal issues during election season.

Two former executive directors of the party, Ben Golnik and Darren Bearson, also secured contracts. Golnik was paid $6,000 to help with the 2010 gubernatorial recount and to help Republicans win the Minnesota Senate. He's still owed another $8,000. Bearson's firm, Compass Point Strategies, earned nearly $50,000 for media and consulting work since 2009.

Whatever the case, memory or not, our hero loves a good party, and that's why Emo Senator has such a following. Tune in this week, as the legislature reconvenes, for more Emo Senator.

Dec 14, 2010

Not long at Bluestem started in mid-July 2006, the blog drew national attention to Tim Walz’s triumph over then-Representative Gil Gutknecht at their first head-to-head debate. A writer at Daily Kos used the coverage to explore why local blogging matters.

Since then, story after story has first appeared here, as well as commentary about news from Greater Minnesota that often pushes rural life and politics toward a broader audience.

Story after story has broken at Bluestem, which runs on my own dime and tips from individual readers. Since the breaking of the Giefer pardon story on Sunday, November 28, people have been asking how they might help with the investigative work Bluestem provides for progressive causes in Minnesota.

Want more research and blogging from this site? Contribute via Bluestem’s tip jar. All contributions will go toward keeping Bluestem going by paying the expenses for the site and for research projects. I enjoy a frugal life in rural Minnesota, and will use each dollar carefully as I pursue leads and story ideas.

Can you spare a few dollars to help fund the best little blog on the prairie? Not comfortable with the tip jar? Email me for an address where contributions can be sent.

Thank you,

Sally Jo Sorensen

P.S. I continue to appreciate news tips as well; the Giefer pardon research started with a reader's tip.

Dec 17, 2009

I'm editing a couple of YouTube clips about R.T. Rybak's cmapaign kick-off stops last week in Southern Minnesota. The first should be posted later today, and another tomorrow afternoon. The posts shouldn't be taken as an endorsement, as I have a consulting contract with the state party and thus Bluestem will not be picking a donkey in this race.

I'm still hoping that the other DFL campaigns can send a letter from a supporter in Greater Minnesota sharing the reasons why their choice is the best person for voters in rural Minnesota. I'd am also happy to cover Greater Minnesota campaign events in West and South Central Minnesota (within an hour and a half drive of McLeod County, or convenient to other events I might be covering in Southern Minnesota) by candidates in addition to Dayton, Kelliher and Rybak. Contact me via the email address found on this site. Since the consulting contract isn't related to my blogging, any travel comes out of my own pocket for content posted here--hence the travel restrictions.

Nor will Bluestem be taking sides in other contested bids for DFL endorsement,the Clark such as the Clark and Reed battle for CD-6 or the Pelowski-White face-off in Winona.

Image: All I want for Christmas 2010 is a DFL governor. (Waterford Christmas tree ornament).

Oct 08, 2009

I've always promised readers that I'll disclose any assistance, contracts, or other renumeration that thics would suggest need to be transparent in order for reader to assess the work here.

One such project has come my way: I am now consulting on New Media training and strategy for the DFL. Hence, the following disclosure will appear in a sidebar my designer will be adding to Bluestem:

Sally Jo Sorensen, editor and proprietor of Bluestem Prairie, serves as a New Media training and strategy consultant for the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

However, all of the statements, opinions, and views expressed on this site by Sorensen are solely her own, save when she attributes them to other sources, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Minnesota DFL, its staff, officers, elected officials, candidates, donors, precinct chairs, volunteers, and senate district and county unit officers and directors.

The opinions, statements, and views of contributing writers are their own.

This web site is not a production of the DFL, and the DFL does not necessarily support or endorse any of the contents on this site.

Another tip came in today as well, and while I respect the source very much, it's not the sort of thing that I'll run with on this site.

My readers should know that I'm simply not much interested in tips that deal with negative news about the personal lives of public officials or local leaders, regardless of their party. Nor am I interested in repeating gossip while decrying it and searching for motives in the actions of those who are doing the talking.

Unless there's a direct impact on policy or that individual's ability to hold office because of the story--and that story can be confirmed--Bluestem has little concern about private and personal matters that I was taught were none of my business.

Posting has been light this week while I read about policy questions, mostly checking out conservative proposals for health care reform (medical malpractice reform, deregulation of insurance by the states, etc.) as well as drafting a creative project. More on both as the week progresses.

Jul 06, 2009

In its earlier iteration, Bluestem Prairie focused exclusively on Minnesota's First Congressional District and Representative Tim Walz. The site has since expanded coverage to Greater Minnesota and added additional contributors, but I still keep an eye on my native Southern Minnesota.

Any time I see a letter to the editor using terms like “left-wing agenda”, I know the writer is desperately grasping at straws.Which was the case with
Eric Anderson’s letter, published June 21, criticizing Congressman Tim
Walz. As a former Mankato resident (where I lived for over 25 years)
and currently one of your neighbors, I felt compelled to respond.

We are lucky to have a brave and thoughtful congressman.

In the month of May alone Walz made a trip
to the Middle East, announced airport grants for southwestern
Minnesota, published surface transportation requests on his website,
voted to create jobs, voted to make schools more energy efficient,
voted for Common Sense Financial Reforms, and promoted the $8,000 tax
credit for first-time homebuyers.

I don’t care what you call it Mr. Anderson,
because the rest of us in southern Minnesota call it, moving in the
right direction. We call it progress. We call it leadership. And we are
grateful to finally have a congressman who asks for our opinion on the
important matters facing working families and then acts on our behalf.

Good letter.

Bluestem will occasionally post about Congressman Walz's hard work, but we'll also be looking at Minnesota's Seventh, rural parts of the Second and Sixth, and the non-Range-Duluth-Tinberland section of the Eighth. (If you want to read about those latter, hyphenated places, quit dawdling here and go visit Minnesota Brown).

A tip jar has also been added, and in time, readers will also see ads and sponsorships. Moreover, BSP will be hosting some Country Conversations with progressives bloggers and a stab at a North-South dialogue with Aaron Brown of Minnesota Brown.